Longshoremen Union Appealing Seattle Area Decision

SEATTLE (AP) — Longshoremen are still standing in the path of investor Chris Hansen and supporters who want to build an arena for NBA basketball near the Seattle waterfront. Officials with International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 19 held a news conference Tuesday to announce an appeal of a Feb. 22 King County Superior Court decision that went against the union. The union believes the court failed to recognize that a memorandum of understanding between Hansen and the city and King County violates state environmental law. The union representatives and candidate for Seattle mayor Peter Steinbrueck said congestion from basketball and hockey games would interfere with container shipping and related businesses nearby, killing jobs. The opponents want to halt the process for further study of other possible locations for an arena.